Persona 3: Soul Spiral
by JohnnyJinx13
Summary: Title subject to change. A slight change on the MC, but overall the same story, I add things here and there to make things more interesting. Persona 3 FES. MCX? It's a mystery, come find out! Aigis is there because she's my favorite female char.
1. Chapter 1

**This is something I have had in mind for a while and I thought, why not, I'll try and start a Persona 3 fan-fic (also, this is FES, so it will have Aigis! :D) and so this is the first chapter of my new fan-fic. Of course, I'm also doing BRUTAL OVERDRIVE and starting another WoW fan-fic, so this might not be updated all that often. I'm just doing as much writing as I can so I can become a better writer. The story will follow the game to a certain degree, but I will take some liberties, but don't fret, it won't affect the overall story. Also, the days won't be numbered, because then it would be… Well, ridiculous, to be honest. I will only mention dates when they're important, such as the Kyoto trip and The Fall… Also, I'm playing the game as I write this, so the story ends when I beat the game, pretty much. This way, I'll accomplish two things at once! :D Alright, happy reading guys! Also, pairings will be… A secret, haha, because I want you to be pleasantly surprised of whatever.**

**Grim Chapter 1: The Bunny Comes to Town**

… Ten years? Has it really been that long since I came here? Heh, didn't seem that long… Maybe because I've been thinking about… What happened that night? Ever since then, I've been family-hopping for ten years, but I'm finally back home, at Port Island. I had transferred in because, well, I'm old enough to at least live in a dorm with complete strangers. It looked so different than before. Well, at least from where I was coming in. Then again, I really couldn't see much through my green and brown hair, which flopped over my eyes.

As I turned away from the train's window, I saw a blue form float in front of my eyes… A butterfly? That was odd. How did it get in here? While I was lost in thought, the blue butterfly disappeared. My mind drifted back to the town, and as I gazed out at the moon-lit city, I couldn't help but get… A bad vibe from there.

"_Iwatodai, Iwatodai… This is the last stop for Tatsumi Port Island."_

Oh crap, this is my stop! I leapt for the door while I still could, barely making it as the doors closed. As I stepped outside, I was greeted by the cold wind of night, as the moon glowed a bright… Yellow? And all the lights… They're out? What was going on here? My audio player wasn't working either… I thought I charged it before leaving? W-well… I guess it doesn't matter, really. It might be nice to hear the city with its sounds and… It was silent… _Deathly_ silent.

I looked around for people, but all I could see were these black boxes, shaped like… Coffins! What was going on around here! It was… It is April, right? April 7th? I mean… H-Halloween isn't even… Wait, do we even celebrate Halloween?... M-my mind is drawing blanks all over the place.

"Phew, stay calm… Stay calm, it's alright. It must be some kind of freaky prank or something… That's all, that's right." I told myself that over and over and made my way to my new home, a dorm near the top of the island. There were coffins all over the place, not just at the station… This was way too overdone to be 'just a prank'… Something was really wrong around here… I quickly made my way inside the dorm, a three-floor building made of brick; it had a rustic feeling about it. As I took my deep breaths inside the hallway, I laid down my bag and slid against the wall, falling onto my ass and closing my eyes.

"It's about time you got here… I've been waiting for so long…" A voice called out.

I jumped up and held my hand to my heart; I thought it was stopping after hearing that creepy voice. As I looked toward the source of the voice, I saw a little boy with blue hair wearing what looked to be a black-and-white prison suit. Was it him? He was the only one in the room, so it _had_ to be him. I looked away and said, "S-sorry, you must be… Wait, do you live-" I looked back over to him, but he was gone… "-here?"

"Hm, not exactly." I jumped again and looked ahead to see the boy in front of me, smiling up at me, "You _can_ say that I live close-by though."

"R-right…"

He raised his hand to the desk, revealing a folder that I must've overlooked, "Now, in order to proceed, you must sign this contract."

"C-contract?" I didn't remember the dorm head saying anything about a contract, "What are you trying to pull?"

"Oh, don't worry, this contract simply states that you will take responsibility for any and all actions you take." He said calmly.

"Hm… A-and nobody else will see my signature?" I hated my name; I loved my parents, but I don't know who did the Kamen Rider mind trick and made them think this was a good name…

"Of course not, your secret," He points at me and then pulls his hand to his heart, "Is safe with me…"

I stood there for a moment and decided that it wouldn't hurt to sign the contract; I mean, it's just a piece of paper, right? As I signed the contract, I kept my eyes on the boy; this kid was beyond weird, I can sense… _Something_ from him, like he had some kind of hidden agenda. He kept looking straight at me; those big blue eyes looked like they were going straight through me. As I laid down the pen and handed the contract to the kid, he looked at my signature and a creepy smile spread across his face.

"Nobody can escape their fate, no matter if you plug your ears and cover your eyes," the contract he held in his hands turned and faded to nothing, like magic, "Time brings us all to the same end, and that end is…" As the shadow turned and wrapped itself around him, I heard a brief whisper from him, "_Near…_"

That was… Weird, to say the least, I mean… That kid was… And that disappearing act he did… Who _was_ he?

"Hey, you!"

I turned to yet another voice and, instead of some creepy kid, it was a cute blondish-brunette instead. Jackpot!

"U-um, hey, d-do you live in this do-" as I glanced down her body, I couldn't but notice her hand was extremely close to… A HOLSTER! I pointed at her and yelled, "W-what the hell? IS THAT A GUN!"

Her eyes went wide and she reached for the gun; W-was I going to die?

"Takeba! Stop!"

From the shadows stepped a girl with long red hair and a curvy body. Before making any assumptions on what to say, I looked over her body as well and – to my shock – she _also_ had a holster and gun. What the hell was going on around here? The brunette calmed down and took a deep breath as the red head came to her side.

"I didn't think you'd arrive so late. My name is Mitsuru Kirijo, I'm one of the students who live in this dorm." The red-head said. She seemed like a princess, the way she walked and spoke.

"… Who's he?" The brunette asked.

Mitsuru looked over at the brunette and said, "He's a transfer student. It was a last minute decision to assign him here. He'll eventually be moved to a room in the boys' dorm."

"… Is it okay for him to be here?"

"W-what? I-it's not like I plan on doing anything perverted or dangerous!" I retorted, the brunette just looked at me strange; maybe that _wasn't_ what was going through her mind. I quickly apologized, "I-I'm sorry… It's been a weird night, that's all. Freaky stuff and all that."

"Anyway," Mitsuru intervened, "This is Yukari Takeba. She'll be a junior this spring, just like you."

"… Hey." Yukari said shyly.

I know I shouldn't ask, but… "W-why do you have a gun?"

"Huh?" Yukari replied, her eyes darting around the room, "Well, um, it's sorta like a hobby… Well, not a hobby, but…"

"Umm…"

Mitsuru patted Yukari on the back, "You know how it is these days… It's for self-defense."

I didn't believe it for a second… But what could I say? Maybe Tatsumi Port changed while I've been away. I agreed for the moment, but in my mind, I was still sorting things out.

Yukari took out the gun and pointed it upward, pulling the trigger but nothing happened, "I-it's not a real gun, anyway."

Oh, okay… It's just to scare people… But that did seem a bit much just to protect yourself…

"It's getting late," Mitsuru said to me, "So you should get some rest. Your room is on the second floor, at the end of the hall. Your things should already be there." Mitsuru glanced over to Yukari and winked at her slyly.

"O-oh…" Yukari said, "I'll show you the way. Follow me."

"It's only on the second floor, I doubt I could get lost…" I said quietly to myself. Regardless, I followed her up to my room.

The building was really nice; there were elegant lights, some paintings… It was more like a hotel than anything. As we reached the second floor, we turned and went down the long hallway, and stopped at the last door on the right.

Yukari spun around on one foot and smiled, "This is it… Pretty easy to remember, huh?.. Since it's right at the end of the hall." As she walked away, she turned again and said, "Oh yeah, make sure you don't lose your key, or you'll never hear the end of it…" Personal experience, maybe? She smiled once more before asking, "So, any questions?"

That contract was still itching the back of my mind, so I might as well ask about it, "What's that contract for, anyway? I thought I was leaving soon anyway."

She cocked her head to the side and went, "Huh?... What contract?"

Before I said anything else, I thought maybe I should just… Keep it to myself for the moment. No need in making a nice girl like her worry about me, hehe.

She fidgeted a little before talking again, "Um… Can I ask you something?" I nodded and she took a deep breath, "On your way here from the station, was everything okay?"

Now that she mentioned it… I had forgotten about the coffins from before, but I should make sure that _that_ was what she meant… I looked at her and said, "W-what do you mean?"

"You know what I—" She paused and looked at the ground, "… Never mind. It seems like you're alright." Why wouldn't I be? "Well, I'd better get going…" As she started walking again, she stopped again; would this girl make up her mind! "Um… I'm sure you still have other questions, but let's save them for later, okay? Good night." She walked briskly away, turning to go up the stairs.

Other questions?.. Maybe she _did_ know something about those coffins and the moon… But for right now, I better get some rest. As freaky as home is at night, I wonder how it'll be in the morning? I was asleep before I even hit the damn pillow…

**The Next Day: April 7****th****, 2010, Early Morning…**

I woke up somewhat late – damn jet lag – and I hopped into the shower really quick. As I let the water run over me, I thought I heard thumping coming from outside; must be some elementary kids who hate high-schoolers or something. After a few moments, the thumping ceased and I eventually got out of the shower. That was when I realized, "Damn, I didn't bring any towels with me… Oh well, there are some in my bedroom."

As I walked into my bedroom from the bathroom, my wet hair clung to my face like tape. As I pulled the hair away, I said, "Ah, that's much better…" Hm, did I leave my door open last night? No, I'm sure I closed it… As I turned to my bed where I laid out my clothes, Yukari was standing in the corner just staring at me…

She held out something in her hands… A towel…

"O-oh… Um, thanks…" I said, taking it and wrapping it around me, "Y-you came to get me for school?"

"Y-yeah…" Yukari said, "B-but you didn't answer, so I knocked for a while."

"O-oh, I was.. In the shower… I heard you, but I didn't know it was you, ya'know?" I replied.

"Right…" Yukari said, "W-well, I'll let you get dressed…." As she walked outside and closed the door… A moment of silence… And then, "AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

I blushed and covered my face with my towel…. Not a great way to start off the day. I got dried off and put on my school uniform; it felt great, being in this uniform, made me feel like I was part of some cool organization. As I left my room and looked to my right, I saw Yukari sitting on the nearby windsill, I blushed a deep red, "U-um, Yukari? A-are you okay?"

She jumped up and ran past me, "Y-yeah, let's get going, or we're going to be late." Oh man, she probably hates me right now; I should try to fix things later. But she was right, if we didn't go right now, we're were more than likely going to be late.

We barely made it onto the train as it made its early morning trip to Gekkoukan High School. As we rode the train to school, Yukari acted calmly and told me what has happened over the past few years… It really _has_ changed from ten years ago. I thought that now, as we are heading to school, would be as good a time as any to try and apologize, "U-um, I'm sorry, T-Takeba-san!" I said as I bowed in front of her.

She yanked me back up and just said, "L-look, you got nothing to apologize for. I shouldn't have barged in, but I was just worried that you'd be late for your first day at school." Wow, she really is a nice person…. Even if she wears a gun at night… She suddenly blushed as she turned away, "B-by the way… What's your name… We've been talking all this time and you still haven't told me."

Ah, crap! I don't want to seem rude but…

_"Gekkoukan High School, Gekkoukan High School… Last stop."_

Ah, saved by the train, "W-well, Takeba-san, I'll see you at the entrance of the school!" I ran off the train and started running toward the school… Of course, I have no idea where I'm going… I stopped at the station entrance for Yukari and apologized for before, telling her that my name is something I'm not very proud of.

We walked through the school and she showed me where I needed to go.

"…Okay? You need to check who your homeroom teacher is and then go to the Faculty Room. I hope we're in the same class, don't you?"

I blushed a little and said, "Uh, y-yeah."

She ran a bit ahead of me and said, "I'll see ya later, okay?" She stopped for a moment and turned around. She said in a hushed tone, "A-also, don't tell anyone about what happened last night, alright?" Wait… Did she mean the coffins?

I waved goodbye and walked over to the school board. I looked all over that board, but I couldn't find my name anywhere. I was about to give up when I heard, "Hey, look at this kid's name… It's Sh…Us…gi." From what I could make of it…. Damn, that was my name. I found my over to that kid and looked at the board. Sure enough, it was on a little Post-It note… Class F, huh?

I turned around and headed through the hallway, making my way to the sign that said 'Faculty Office'. As I walked down there, though… I noticed a few things. First off, there was this older guy with a samurai helm talking to this guy with blonde hair speaking in some sort of foreign accent. A bit bizarre… Thankfully, there was this cute bookworm-type looking at the school map. I walked up next to her and looked at the map as well, finding that the faculty office was right behind me.

I decided to be a gentleman and located the Library… But laughed; the library was right next to us. I turned to her and said, "U-um…" I pointed to the door right next us and said, "T-the library is right here."

She looked at me, then back to the map and blushed deeply, "I-I'm so sorry! I-I was so confused from this map… A-and all this time it was…" I thought she was going to start crying!

I patted her on the shoulders and said, "H-hey! No worries! I-I'm new here, and I thought I should start out by helping a fellow student!"

She looked at me and said, "Y-you're the new kid? Y-you're Shi-"

I slapped my hands across her mouth and went, "Shhh, please don't… I hate that name…" W-whoa, her lips were so warm and soft… I blushed and pulled my hands off her mouth, "A-anyway, what's your name?"

She blushed and bowed, "U-um, I'm Chihiro, from the Student Council, also a book enthusiast."

"W-well, nice to meet you, Chirhiro-san, I hope we can talk like this again sometime. I gotta go talk to my homeroom teacher…" As I walked away, I turned and waved goodbye to her. She kept staring at me though… I felt like my heart was racing… Why are there so many damn cute girls at this school!

I stepped inside the faculty room and noticed another brunette woman walking around and picking up files. She looked over at me and smiled, "Oh, are you the new student?" I nodded and she continued, "You're in eleventh grade, correct?.. Wow, you lived in so many different places… Let's see…" She flipped through a few pages and stopped, "Ah, 2000… That was, what, ten years ago? Your parents…" She gasped and looked at me sadly, "I-I'm sorry… I've been so busy, I didn't have time to read this beforehand."

I looked at her and smiled, "N-no, it's okay… I-I'm… Okay… Besides, this sort of thing really shouldn't be on student files, should it?" I was annoyed, I was pissed… Who decided to put someone's tragic memories inside a damn folder for anyone to read!

"I'm Ms. Toriumi, I teach Composition. Welcome to our school."

I smiled brightly and said, "Nice to meet you, Toriumi-sensei!"

"Hehe," she chuckled, "Such enthusiasm… You don't see a lot of it in this day and age. Oh, and look at that," She smiles, "You're in Class 2-F. And that just so happens to be _my_ classroom. But, before we go to class, we have the Welcoming Ceremony in the Auditorium. We should go now, since it's about to start." She walked over to the door and said, "Follow me."

A while later, I'm sitting in the auditorium listening to the Principal give his 'rousing' speech. As I sit there in 'utter awe', I feel a poke coming from behind and someone going, "Psst, hey you, new kid."

I turned slightly to get a view of a kid smiling at me – what is it with all these creepy smiles! – and he whispered, "You came to school with Yukari this morning, right? I saw you two walking together. Hey, I have a question… Do you know if she has a boyfriend?" What? Just because he saw me walking and talking to her, he thinks I know something like _that_?

I sighed and said, "No, I don't know… I just met her last night, and this morning…" I slapped my hands over my mouth; geez, what a loose-lipped moron I was.

"This morning?.."

"I hear talking… And I believe it's someone from Ms. Toriumi's class…"

I heard Ms. Toriumi whisper over our heads with anger, "Shh! Be quiet! You're going to get me in trouble!"

After listening to the Principal's speech and heading back to his classroom, Ms. Toriumi told everyone about how I just transferred in. She patted me on the shoulder and said, "Well, go ahead and introduce yourself."

I sighed and walked up to the chalkboard and wrote out my name… Utter silence ensued… God, I hate me damn name… I walked back to the front of the room and cleared my throat, "Hello.. My name is… Sh-Shini Usagi… The transfer student."

Out of the corner of my eye, I spot a cute brunette: Yukari! So she was in my class after all? Ohhh, and she heard my name, too…

"Dude!"

I looked over to the center area of the classroom to see a guy in a cap and goatee jumping up and giving me a high-five, "U-um, yeah?"

He walked over and high-fived me, "That is one seriously bad-ass name, man!"

Ms. Toriumi walked over and smacked him upside the head, "Iori-kun, please leave Usagi-kun alone and return to your seat?"

The guy grumbled and turned around, walking back to his seat. Ironically enough, Ms. Toriumi placed me beside that guy, Iori. As time passed, eventually the bell rang and we were allowed to go. Before I could even get up from my seat, Iori was already at my desk and grinning like an idiot.

" 'Sup, dude! How's it goin'?" He asked me.

"U-um.. Iori-san, right?.. What do you want?" I replied, shyly.

"Oh, right, let me introduce myself properly, at least. I'm Junpei Iori. Nice to meet ya." He sat down in his desk, "I transferred here when I was in eighth grade, so I know how tough it is being the new kid… SO I wanted to say, "hey." See what a nice guy I am!" His gaze turned away from me and to his right, where he said loudly, "Hey, it's Yuka-tan! I didn't think we'd be in the same class again."

I turned to see Yukari come over and lean against my desk, sighing, "At it again, huh? I swear, you'll talk to anyone if they'll listen. Did you ever think you might be bothering someone?"

Junpei jumped up and groaned, "What? But I was just bein' friendly."

Yukari just looked at him, "If you say so." She paused and looked at me, smiling, "Anyway, looks like we're in the same homeroom…"

I blushed and said the most embarrassing things ever, "Y-yeah, must be fate!" I face-palmed myself mentally when I said that.

"Fate? Yeah, right." She chuckled, "S-still, I'm a little surprised."

Junpei kept glancing between the two of us, "Um, hello? Are you forgetting…" He gave himself a thumbs-up, "That I'm in this class, too?" He turned and chuckled a little, "By the way, I heard you two came to school _together _this morning. What's up with that?" He turned back with a sly grin on his face, "C'mon, gimme the dirt!"

Yukari panicked and blushed a little, "W-what are you talking about! We live in the same dorm, there's _nothing_ going on, okay? Why are people even talking about it! Now you have me worried…"

As Junpei looked away in disappointment, Yukari edged closer to me and whispered, "Hey… You didn't say anything to anyone about… You know what, did you?"

I don't know why she would even suspect I told anyone about what happened this morning, "N-no, of course not… It's a bit embarrassing to even talk about, really…"

She looked at me dumbfounded, "W-what? I don't understand."

"Y-you saw me naked, that's what I mean." I grumbled quietly.

I don't know if Junpei has an auto-detect on the word 'naked' or something, but he suddenly jumped into the conversation, "N-naked?... W-wait, what?"

"N-no, idiot!" Yukari smacked me, "A-about last night! Don't tell anyone!"

Junpei blushed a little, "L-last night…. S-something happened, didn't it!"

Now Yukari and I were blushing; seriously, why were all these weird situations happening on my first day back home! I tried coming up with a quick solution, "U-um… T-there was this show on TV last night… A-and, there was this guy naked on the screen, he looked a lot like me, and Yukari told me about it this morning and I told her that it was just some guy who really looked like me…. S-so, it's really an embarrassing story, you see! And she didn't want anyone to know, so she swore me to tell nobody about this! Haha, it's funny, right?"

Junpei just looked at me blankly… I don't think the lie worked….

"R-right… T-that's what happened." Yukari added in, staring at me.

Junpei smiled idiotically yet again, "Oh, geez, you had me going there…. I thought _this_ and _that_ happened!"

Yukari and I looked at each other, blushing at the thought.

I waved my hands frantically in disagreement, "N-no! That's ridiculous, nothing like that…"

Yukari patted me on the back, "Y-yeah, Shini-kun and I are just friends, that's all… S-something like that…" She looked around frantically, "A-ah, that's right… I got errands to run for the Archery Team, so I gotta go… I-I'll see you at the dorm later, Shini-kun." And with that, she left the classroom… My heart started beating normally again.

Junpei slapped me on the back, earning him a yelp from me, "But look at you! First day here, and people are already talkin' about you! Believe it or not," He paused smiling slyly at me and winking, "She's actually quite popular. You da man!"

I poked him, "H-hey, I thought we told you… M-me and Takeba-san are _not_ like that."

Junpei just ignored me and laughed, "This is gonna be a fun year. I can feel it!"

Despite the fact that Junpei was… Well, 'Junpei', he was actually quite fun to hang around with. He was so full of energy, he was like a electric plant. We decided to hang out for a little while longer before heading back to our respective dorms. As we left the school, we couldn't help but notice a large group of girls surrounding this one guy with platinum hair and a band-aid above his left eye. Junpei and I laughed at his misfortune, and yet cried at his luckiness.

As he and I parted ways, I found my way back to the dorm and came inside to be greeted by Mitsuru and Yukari, who were reading… Boring… After saying goodnight to them, I went to bed…

**The Next Day: April 8****th****, 2010, Early Morning**

That day, Yukari trusted me enough to get ready myself… No repeat of yesterday, huh? As I entered the school grounds, I overheard a conversation which peaked my interest.

"Did you hear the rumor…?"

"Oh, um… Something about… A bathroom?"

The girl sighed, "N-no! Not that one! I mean the story about the first-year student! Not only did she stop coming to school, she does nothing but sit and stare at the walls all day." She leans in to her friend, saying quietly, "If her mother tries to talk to her, she only mutters to herself, "It's coming… It's coming…!"… Freaky, right?"

The other girl sighed, "Huh. How about that."

As the first bell rang, I hurried into the classroom. As Ms. Toriumi began talking about her favorite author, Junpei was busy looking at a magazine… Uh-oh.

"… Hey, Junepi! Were you listening?" Ms. Toriumi called out, "Who did I say was my favorite author?"

Junpei looked like a deer caught in headlights, "H-Huh? U-umm…" He quickly looks at me and goes, "Psst! Who does she like?"

I looked at him and said, "O-oh, Utsubo Kubota."

Junpei looked back at Ms. Toriumi and said, "U-Utsubo Kubota!"

Ms. Toriumi looked at him surprised, "T-that's right! So, you were listening after all!"

Junpei rubbed the back of his head, "Eheheh…. Well, you know how I like to pay attention!" He looked back to me and said, "Man, you saved my bacon, Usagi!"

As I sat there, I heard people whispering amongst themselves… Stuff like 'Usagi gave him the answer' and such. I felt my phone vibrate for a moment; who the hell was messaging me? I got a new phone and haven't given anyone my number! I look around and stealthily pull out my phone, flipping it open and checking my messages. There was one new one from… 0-000-000-0000? The hell? As I opened the message, there was only one line there…

_"Your Charm has increased."_

M-my charm?.. What the hell does that mean? I decided to disregard it and put my phone back into my pocket. After suffering a few more hours of class, school was let out and I got to leave for the dorms. I decided to take a detour through the strip mall section, checking out what I missed these past ten years. I saw a few people with the same uniform as me, one of them was even in my class. I think his name was Kenji? Oh, and there was this fat kid, he looked like he was my age, or maybe a year younger; whatever, he ate like ten grown-ups… Oh, a bookstore! It had been a while since he visited a place like this… But it was getting late, so he promised to return there sometime later to check it out.

As evening came by, I entered the dorm to hear Yukari say, "Oh, he's back."

As I closed the door and turned around, I saw that there was a long-haired man sitting in the main chair in the living room. He had glasses and a goatee, much like Junpei's… He wore a suit over a black turtleneck… What kind of outfit is that?

The man looked at me and said, "So, this is our new guest…" He got up from his seat and came over, greeting me with a handshake, "Good evening. My name is Shuji Ikutsuki. I'm the Chairman of the Board for your school." Oh, crap, this guy was the guy making sure I stayed in school… He didn't seem like a bad kind of guy, "Haha, 'Ikutsuki'… Hard to say, isn't it? That's why I don't like introducing myself. Even _I_ get tongue-tied sometimes." He motioned over to the sitting area, "Please, have a seat."

As we sat done, he positioned himself so that he seemed like a professional. Meanwhile, I was sitting uncomfortably close to Yukari… As my hand went down onto the seat, I brushed up against her and we both said 'Sorry'. Needless to say, Mr. Ikutsuki laughed at us.

He pulled off his glasses and began wiping them on a cloth, "I apologize about the confusion regarding your accommodations. However," He put his glasses back on, sighing in contentment, "It may take a while longer before you receive your proper room assignment. Is there anything you'd like to ask?"

Nothing really came to mind… Until, "T-the other night…. I saw…"

Mr. Ikutsuki looked at me and smiled, "Saw what?"

Yukari gave me this weird look, like it was something I shouldn't have asked… Wait, was this the thing she didn't want me to talk about! Oh, dammit!

"You were probably just tired," Ikutsuki said, "I wouldn't worry about it." Tired..? I've been tired before playing on my PSP, but I don't see scary shit like that every time… Something isn't right, I can just feel it… He looked at me intently, asking if I had any other questions. I shook my head no, "Then, I hope you have a successful school year. Now," He said as he got up from his chair, "If you'll excuse me." He stopped to look at me, a smile on his face, "You must be tired from transferring and the excitement. You should go to bed early."

Maybe he was right?... This guy didn't seem like such a bad person… Hell, maybe he was some sort of genius?

He laughed a bit before continuing, "As they say, "The early bird catches the bookworm!" Please forgive the pun." He chuckled as he exited the dorm…. The man was an idiot…

Yukari sighed and said, "You'll get used to his lame jokes." Glad to know I'm not the only one who feels that way, haha.

I did as Mr. Ikutsuki said and went to bed early… Weird thing, as I laid there, I felt like I was being watched… Anyway, that didn't stop me from falling asleep… Or so I thought….

"Welcome to the Velvet Room, my good man."

I opened my eyes to a room… In an elevator?... In front of me sat a small man with an impossibly large nose…. It was almost as big as my-

"My name is Igor… I am delighted to make your acquaintance." The man said, moving his hand to the woman next to him, "This is Elizabeth. She's a resident here, like yourself."

This 'Elizabeth' bowed in front of me, "Pleased to meet you."

"This place exists between dream and reality, mind and matter… It's been _years_ since we've had a guest." His hand motions to the table, where sat…. My contract? How did he… "Only those who have signed the contract can enter this place… Henceforth, you shall be welcome here, in the Velvet Room. You are destined to hone your unique ability, and you will require my help to do so." He raised a finger to me, "I only ask one thing in return… That you abide by the contract and assume responsibility for the choices you make."

I shook my head at them, "I-I don't understand…"

Igor put his hand up, gesturing for me to stop, "That is fine… For now." He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small key, "Hold onto this, would you?" He tossed the key over to me, " 'Till we meet again…" As he said that… I felt my body become heavy and… The nothing…

I woke up in my bed, "Ah… So it was a dream…" As I raised my hand to stretch, I hear a jingle come from my hand. As I unclenched my fist, I saw a small key that shone a bright purple… It _wasn't_ a dream….

**The Next Day: April 9****th****, 2010, Early Morning**

I met Junpei at the school entrance, and he was even more fired up than usual! He waved at me and ran up, "Oh, what a perfect day! The sun is shining, the sky is blue and we're young! What more could we ask for!"

I smiled at him, "Hehe, you're full of energy."

Junpei smiled, "Of course! Dude listen to this…" He leans in, "Ah! Wait, I'm not supposed to say anything! Sorry man!" He walked away, chuckling.

I followed him into the school telling him about what I did before I transferred here. He was somewhat surprised, "Dude! You learned kendo?"

"Hehe, yeah, my Grandpa taught me for two years. He had his own dojo and everything." Yeah, kendo was fun, but I like playing the guitar more anyway. That doesn't mean I still don't pull out my old kendo sword and practice every now and then. If I saw Grandpa again and noticed I dulled since our last fight… He wouldn't let it go so easily…

"Hey, dude, you're looking a bit pale." Junpei stopped me, "Are you feeling okay?"

I laughed, "Ah, haha, yeah, just thinking about old times…"

Junpei laughed at me, "Oh yeah… We got Ekoda next…. Maybe we should skip…"

I smacked him, "H-hey, don't say something like that. How bad can this 'Ekoda' be, anyway?" When Junpei told me about this guy's history… He was worse than Grandpa, and _that_ scared me.

As we sat down in the classroom, hoping to God that Mr. Ekoda wasn't in a bad mood, the man himself came in and dropped his book on the podium, eliciting silence from the whole class. He stood there for a moment and said, "Ahem… I am Mr. Ekoda, and I'll be teaching you Classic Literature."

Classic Literature?.. W-well, it's not my _best_ subject, but my aunt bought me a bunch of those old-styled books back when…. My parents… I decided to focus on the class for the mean time. As I sat there and listened to Mr. Ekoda ramble on, I felt my eyes get heavy… That dream must've taken a lot out of me. I thought about going to sleep for the class, but then I looked over at Junpei… Already snoring loud enough for Mr. Ekoda to hear. I didn't want to incur his wrath as well, so I stayed up and listened to his ridiculous rant.

"First on our syllabus is "Ise Monogatari," the origin of Japanese literature. It's a very interesting story. You youngsters might call it, "da bomb." Did he really?... Y-yes he did.

Regardless, I stayed up and took notes on what he said, although most of it was just ranting, really. When he told us that we were done with the lecture, I felt my phone vibrate yet again; sure enough, it was 0-000-000-0000. I opened up the message to see:

_"Your Academics has increased."_

Who the hell was sending me these messages! Anyway, I put my phone away and went on with the school day. After school, I headed home with Junpei. As we walked to the station, I saw the girl who was looking for the library on my first day of school. I turned to Junpei and said, "H-hey, I'll see ya later. I gotta go.." I looked over at Chihiro playing with a cat, how cute, "Do something."

Apparently, he caught on when he saw me look over at Chihiro, "Dude, you already got Yuka-tan, and you're still gonna hit on other chicks?"

"_Dude_," I said, mocking him, "I already told you, me and Takeba-san don't have that kind of relationship."

"Hehe, I know, I know, I just wanted to mess with you." Junpei waved as he ran to the station, turning around one more time and yelling, "GOOD LUCK, LOVER BOY!"

I took a nearby soda can and chucked it at Junpei, hitting him in the shin; Bulls-eye, bastard! As I paid the person whose soda I stole, I heard a voice behind me go, "H-hello, S-Shini-kun."

I turned around to see Chihiro standing with her hands fumbling behind her back, "A-ah, hey, Chihiro-san, I was about to come over and talk to you when…" My face turned red, "U-um, did you hear what that guy said?"

Chihiro turned red as well and looked away, "N-not… Not really… I heard a little bit, but that's fine."

"Ah, th-that's good," I said, "S-so, how was the Library?"

"Great, so many books to read, so little time."

"R-right, you're part of the Student Council, right?"

"Y-yeah, I'm glad you remembered…"

We talked for a good hour or so, maybe even an hour and a half. When I told her what time it was, she panicked and told me she was supposed to be home soon. We told each other good bye and we agreed to talk again soon… I gave her my phone number… It was a good day… But sadly, I didn't know things were going to go awry so quickly.

As soon as I got back to the dorm, I went to bed, practically passed out from today's excitement. I woke up yawning loudly as I heard someone slamming on my door. And then there was a bunch of noise coming from down the hall… What the hell was going on so late at night?

As I got up to answer the door, still in my school uniform, I heard a familiar voice yell, "Wake up!" W-wait, Yukari! "S-sorry, I'm coming in!" As Yukari ran into the room, she looked out of breath and scared, "I don't have time to explain. We have to get out of here, now!"

"W-what's going on!" As soon as I said that, something struck the dorm hard enough to actually shake my room… Why were the lights off?... The moon was that strange yellow color again, too… This couldn't be a mere coincidence, something was happening.

Yukari grabbed me and pulled me out of the room, yelling the whole time, "Hurry! Downstairs! We'll leave through the back door!" As we rounded the corner to the stairs, she stopped suddenly, "Wait," She turned around and handed me a sword, "Take this, just in case. You said you studied Kendo, right? Then you should have no problem using it." I took it and swung it a few times, it felt different from a kendo sword, but that's not the point at the moment, "Okay, let's go!"

As we reached the bottom floor, we ran to the back area where I heard something beep on Yukari's person. She reached into her pocket to pull out a small device, "Takeba, can you hear me?" That voice sounded like Mitsuru, but why was she-

"Y-yes, Mitsuru-senpai! I hear you!"

The radio crackled with static, "Be careful! There's more than one enemy! The one we're fighting isn't the one Akihiko saw!"

Yukari's eyes widened in shock, "W-what!" The back door began shaking, loud thuds being heard from the other side… Something told me that the 'real enemy' is coming after us. Yukari took a few steps back and said, "L-let's pull back!"

"R-right!" I said, following her back to the front entrance.

The loud thuds started coming from there, as well. We retreated back upstairs, where we heard more thuds! Were we going to be safe _anywhere_? We kept going up and up till we reached the top floor, the only place left to go being the roof. We decided the roof would probably be the best place to go, so we ran outside, letting the cold air hit us. We took a breather as we tried calming ourselves down… Yukari seemed pretty calm though… She knew something that I didn't.

"H-hey, Takeba-san… Just what… What the hell is going on right now?" I asked her sternly.

She looked at me and then looked at the ground, "I-it's complicated… But don't worry, Mitsuru-senpai and Akihiko-senpai are taking care of it, as we speak… Everything's going to be alright…. I think we're alright for now."

_Thud, thud!_

Yukari gasped, "W-what!"

We both turned to see… I don't even know what we saw… All these hands began popping up out of nowhere, propping themselves on the side of the dorm. As it lifted its body up… There was a blue mask, a plain blue mask being held by one of the hands. I… I couldn't move… I was… So scared…

"S-stand back!" Yukari yelled, "These things… We call them **Shadows**, and the only way they can be beaten is…" She pulled out her gun from the first night we met, and she… Held it to her head!

"W-what're you doing!" I yelled at her.

"Sh-shut up! I'm going to save our sorry asses… I-If I can just…" Before she could do… Whatever she was going to do, that 'Shadow' thing attacked Yukari, knocking the gun out of her hands and her to the side.

As I stood there, watching that Shadow move closer to Yukari… I-I panicked… I didn't know what to do…. I suddenly saw a small glint of light from below me: Yukari's gun! I picked it up quickly, but realized that, like she told me, it wasn't a real gun… So, what do I do now?

_"It's simple… Point it at your HEAD! Hahahahaha!"_

"H-huh? Wh-who's there!"

_"Don't worry, it won't kill you… In fact, it will 'awaken' you…"_

"S-stop joking around here!"

_"Geez, try to do something nice for a guy and he calls you a Joker… Well, for now, you can call me 'Joker', but you gotta do what I say, okay?"_

"W-why?"

_"Because, dumbass, if you do… You'll save that pathetic girl over there."_

I gasped, I looked back to see the beast going after Yukari!

_"That's right… Now, all you need to do… Is point that gun at your head… Imagine that it's a REAL gun… And…"_

As I held the gun against my head, I began to feel my heart race again, was I really doing this?...

_"Now! PULL THAT TRIGGER!"_

I felt time stop… It was as though everything around me ceased to exist for a brief moment… I could hear my heart beating faster than I could think… And as I pulled the trigger… A word popped into my head…. "P-Per…. So… Na…."

_Click… BANG!_

I felt my entire mind swell with thoughts, like schematics or stuff like that, all of it just rushing through my mind and out into the air itself. As I glanced upward, I saw all these blue bits combine, creating something….

_I am thou… And thou art I…_

_ I arise from the sea of your soul…_

_ I am Orpheus, Master of Strings…._

_"Yes! YES! That's the stuff…. Now, I'll take over for a moment…"_

"W-wait, what!"My head suddenly felt like it was on fire! I grabbed my head and screamed in pain; was it that voice-thing doing this to me? As I looked up at the figure that the blue lights formed, I saw it enveloped in a dark mass. The pain subsided as the figure called 'Orpheus' was consumed… In its place, though… I couldn't be for sure…

The dark mass hardened and crumbled away into a dark mist, revealing a figure cloaked in a black cloth, tattered at its edges. Its head was covered with a red metal helm, a mixture of devil horns and a knight's armor. His feet were clad in red steel, as was his hands and waist… In his hand was a red and black scythe, a symbol of death… As it descended upon the monster chasing Yukari, I could see it smile from beneath the helm… An evil, malicious smile…

_"Ohh! It feels so good to be free again!"_ The voice screamed as the figure's scythe rose into the air. As it came down upon the monster's head, it split and splattered all over the place. The figure screamed in delight from the monster's entrails being spread everywhere. As it roared in front of the yellow moon… It's figured dissolved into Orpheus… And then it finally disappeared….

As Yukari looked at me with worry – and a hit of fear – she asked, "Is it over..?" A roar nearby gave us a big 'no'.

As these two blobs walked up to us, I noticed that they had masks similar to the one that… _Thing_ destroyed earlier. As I pulled out my sword to attack, I heard that voice come back to me…

_"Hey, you can use that gun from before, ya'know… I don't wanna fight these small fries, so I'll let ol' Orphy take care of them…."_

I held the gun up to my head, "Orpheus!"

When I pulled the trigger, Orpheus appeared before me again and proceeded to crush those two blobs with his killer lyre. As the fight ended… I felt… sleepy… And.. I… Uhh… Ow… Did my head just hit the ground?... Yup… It did… I guess I overdid things a bit….

**Author's Corner!**

**Okay, tell me what you think of this. I wrote this all in one go, no revisions or anything. I added some dialogue such as with Chihiro and now there's Joker? Oooh, what could be going on there! Guess you'll have to wait till the next chapter to find out!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Okay, so, I had to start my game over to get a certain scene, so… Damn, I'm already behind. Anyway, this chapter will be starting off from when the main character passes out after using 'Thanatos' – the big creepy thing that burst out of Orpheus – except in **_**this**_** story, it's not Thanatos, but… Wait, can't tell you, it would ruin my whole plan… Muahahaha! Ahem, anyway, sorry for the long delay, I had to think of what to do next. Even though I'm following the story, that doesn't mean I have to do JUST that, so this chapter will go on probably till the first entrance into Tartarus. ****By the way, I hope you didn't mind those typos in the first chapter, when I went back and read it, I nearly hurled. Yes, I am a grammar Nazi, and yes, if I find typos in your stories, I will curse you… You have been warned. :3**

**By the way, again, I had to delete some of my old gaming data. Since I'm gonna do all – that's right, ALL – Social Links, I'm gonna have to make multiple saves, so this is gonna get confusing for me, so please bear with it. This story will be better because of it, okay?**

**Chapter 2: A Trip to Tartarus and a Less-Than-Preferable Foe**

I found myself floating, just like before; it was that dream I had a few days ago. Wait, was it a dream? I got that key, and the dream was so vivid…

"It's so nice to see you again." A wicked voice said. When I opened my eyes, there I was once again, sitting in the 'Velvet Room'. Across from me in his usual large chair was long-nose, and next to him was the maid-girl, "You became unconscious after awakening to you 'power'… Oh, but it's nothing to worry about, though." He waved his hand; puffing some air, "So, just relax."

I did as he asked and took a deep breath, sure I was in this weird dream – or dimension, maybe – but, nothing serious was going on, so whatever… Right?

"By the way…" Uh-oh, that didn't sound un-serious, "I see that it was Orpheus that heeded your calling. That power is called a **Persona**… A manifestation of your psyche, as it were."

"Okay, Igor, was it?" The long-nosed man nodded, "I took an independent study on psychology, I learned all about Jungian theory… The black things were **Shadows**, and this… 'Orpheus', he's my **Persona**… Both of these things are a part of that theory… But, I don't understand how my persona could manifest like… Well, like a monster or something…"

"It may take some time to fully comprehend," Igor said, smiling a bit sinisterly, "A Persona is a facet of your personality that surfaces as you react to external stimuli…" He covers his face with his hands, and reveals one half of his face, "You can think of it as a mask that protects you as you brave many hardships." He puts his hands down and sighs, "But, that being said, your power is still weak…"

Okay, now I was lost, "Okay, you lost me…"

He looks at me, a Cheshire grin on his face, "When you use your Persona ability, you must channel your inner strength. The ability evolves as you develop your **Social Links** – your emotional ties with others… Like that Chihiro girl…" Wait, how did he know about Chihiro?

Igor continued, "The stronger your Social Links, the more powerful your Persona ability. Please remember that." He turns slightly to look at the clock, smiling, "Now then… Time marches on in your world. I shouldn't keep you here any longer."

"B-but wait," I said, pointing at him, "I still have some questions!"

"Next time you come here," He points behind me to the door that miraculously appeared there, "You will come here of your own accord," He waved bye to me, "Until then…"

The maid girl waved with Igor, giggling before saying, "Toodles."

"Toodles?" And then, all went dark. And just as quickly, my mind began to clear up a bit… Jeez, I wonder how long I've been asleep anyway..? Wait, was there… Someone close by? As I opened my eyes once again, I find myself laying in a comfy bed, but the room doesn't seem familiar, it smells like… Oh shit, it's a hospital… I try to jump out of bed, but my body won't listen to me…

"You're awake..!" A gentle voice rang out. I look to my left to see Yukari, sitting next to me… How long has she been here? How long have I been here? She looked away before muttering, "Um, how do you feel?"

"Where am I? I mean," I roll my eyes, "I know I'm in a hospital, but which hospital am I in. I didn't see any on the way in from out of town."

"Thank goodness. You finally came to…" She sighed at me, "How much sleep do you need! It's been a whole week!" She turned back to me and smiled, "I was so worried about you…" It was kind of an awkward silent moment before she realized I asked where I was, "Oh yeah, this is Tatsumi Memorial Hospital. It's just a short walk from the station."

She rested her head on her hand, slouching a little, "The doctor couldn't find anything wrong with you. He said you were just exhausted. But then you kept sleeping and sleeping… You know how worried I was?"

"Excuse me, considering what happened last night and all that crap I went through, I think I deserve a week, no TWO weeks free of this nonsense… And thanks… For worrying about me.." I jerked my head away, somewhat flustered. But when I turned back, I saw a tint of pink on Yukari's cheeks, "A-anyway, what happened last night?"

"Um…" Yukari started, but then she looked away, "I'm sorry I couldn't do anything… Even though I was supposed to protect you, I… But your power! It was amazing."

I think back to what happened last night… We were on the roof, that giant thing attacked us… I picked up the gun and… Nothing. I was drawing a big blank there for some reason… Like… It was something I didn't want to remember. I looked up at the ceiling, a pale off-white, and asked, "Um, what did I do, exactly..?"

"The power you used… We call it-"

"Persona…" I answered automatically.

"Y-yeah, but how did you-" She looked at me and I gave her a look that said 'not-right-now-just-give-me-the-details', "Anyway, those creatures you defeated are Shadows… Our enemy. We'll explain everything later. I'm sorry I didn't tell you before."

I chuckled, "It's fine, I doubt I would've believed you if I hadn't seen it myself. And by 'we', I assume you mean Kirijo-senpai and that guy… Akihiko-san, was it? Once I get out of this bed and out of this God-forsaken place, I'm all for it."

Yukari smiled and nodded before getting off her stool and talking a few steps away from me, "I, uh… I wanted to tell you that.. I'm sorta like you." Yeah, I figured as much… Seriously, you couldn't have been much more obvious unless you had a sign. I asked her why she was telling me all this anyway, why not let me just be oblivious to it all, say it was a dream and move on… Then she dropped the bomb on me.

"My dad died in an accident when I was little… And my mom and I aren't exactly on good terms… You," She paused, looking back to me with saddened eyes, "You're all alone too, right?" Whoa, she didn't mean that we had similar powers… She meant similar background… I felt like a jerk for a moment or two there, "Too be honest, I already know about your past," Yeah, they have it in my school file, seriously what the hell, "But it didn't seem fair, so I wanted you to know about mine… It happened ten years ago."

Wait, ten years ago..? That was the same year my parents… This couldn't have been mere coincidence, could it? Yukari teared up a bit as she continued, "There was a big explosion in the area. Supposedly, my dad died in the blast, but nobody really knows what happened. He was working in a lab, run by the Kirijo group," Wait, now Mitsuru is involved in this as well? This is just too weird, "So, I'm hoping that if I stick around long enough, I'll find out something. That's why I'm going to Gekkoukan High, and why I was there when… _This_," She said, motioning to my currently limp body, "Happened to you."

She turned and sat on the bed, gently knocking against my feet, "Of course, I panicked and wasn't much help… It was my first time fighting them, too." She looked at me with regret, "I'm so sorry… This wouldn't have happened if I wasn't such a coward."

I forced myself onto my arms and eventually found some balance on my sore-as-hell ass, despite Yukari's objections. I put one very painful hand on her shoulder and looked right at her, "It's not your fault, okay? If you hadn't been there, I wouldn't have had the courage to pick up that gun… I knew that, despite the fact that I had no idea what was going on, I had to… Protect you." We locked eyes for a brief moment, before breaking away to lie back down, which hurt like hell, too.

Yukari hopped up and somewhat swayed, walking around to the foot of my bed before turning and smiling, "Alright, I'm gonna get going. I'll let the others know you woke up. Take it easy okay? Be a good patient!" She began to walk out as she finished off, "And don't hesitate to call the nurse. I'm sure she'll take good care of you." Nurse? Oooh, hello~~~ Nurse! Oh, maybe a hospital… Isn't so bad… Yukari popped her head back in for a brief moment, smiling while saying bye to me… And then I imagined Yukari dressed as a Nurse… Then a Maid… And then I had pleasant dreams, haha.

**The Next Day: April 18****th****, 2010, Early Morning**

I nearly forgot that schools in Japan have school on Saturdays – you can thank American schools for having two-day weekends, although I do miss them, even now – but thankfully, Yukari picked me up from the hospital and brought me my school uniform… She's like my wife, almost, haha… N-never mind. Anyway, I got changed – without incident, thank God – and Yukari and I made our way to Gekkoukan. Once we reached the school gates, Yukari had to leave for something with the Archery club, but she told me Ikutsuki-san wanted to talk to me once I got back… On the fourth floor… Something doesn't sit well with that, I don't know why though.

Today's class was… Well, interesting. I had that one teacher I saw in the hallway my first day of school, the man with the samurai helm, and he was ranting about… Well, "That's enough about mammoths.. I don't see the big deal, they're just huge elephants." Yeah, he's somewhat of a samurai fanatic, and anything non-samurai might as well be burnt to the ground, "And that wraps it up for the Stone Age… I'm tired about talking about stones. I'd rather talk about," He jumps up onto the podium, swinging his arm around as though he held a sword, "The Sengoku Era! Japanese history's not that exciting until then." He hopped off the podium and sighed, "But, I'm being paid to teach you about rocks and huge elephants… So, tough luck…"

Mr. Ono flips through his lesson plans for next time and groans, "Next is… the Jomon period? When do the samurai get their day in the sun!" He slammed his folder shut and tossed it to the floor, "I'll just ask a question at random and call it a day," Oh thank God, "Hmm… Hey, Junpei!" Oh shit, "What was the style of houses in the Jomon period called?"

I looked to Junpei who looked like a deer caught in headlights, "Uh.. How am I supposed to know about something way back then?" He shot me a quick look, "Quick, Usagi! What the heck is the answer?" History was never my best subject… I thought they had elevated houses.

Mr. Ono scoffed, "I can't believe you can get this – a simple question – wrong… You're not fit to be called Samurai!"

I got a text message from that '0' number, which had a single line on it:

_Mud huts… Dumbass._

…What the hell? It has to be someone in this class! Was it Yukari? No, she doesn't have my number… Ah, forget it, there's no point in crying over spilt mammoth milk. After school, it was relatively calm on the way back; Junpei had decided to hang out in the mall so I went back to the dorm as Yukari told me to. As I walked into the dorm, it was eerily quiet, so I assumed they were up on the fourth floor, waiting for me… I wonder what was going to happen.

I passed the second and third floor, nobody in sight, until I hit the fourth floor. Waiting there in her usual pink attire was Yukari, "Oh, there you are!" She smiled as she led me into the room, which was surprisingly roomy. Mitsuru and, of course, Yukari were there. I saw the boy with the platinum hair and band-aid over his eye-brow, he must be Akihiko. And… Ikutsuki?

"Ah," Ikutsuki said, his hands crossed over his crossed legs, "There you are. I'm glad that you're okay." He briefly looked to a small case on the table where we were sitting at, "The reason I asked you here is because I needed to talk to you." He then looked to Akihiko, "Before that, I believe I mentioned him earlier, but this is Akihiko."

The platinum haired boy waved at me with a slight grin, "How ya doin'?" Wow, talkative huh?

Anyway, Ikutsuki continued, "Okay, let me start off by asking you this… Would you believe me if I said that a day consists of more than twenty-four hours?"

… I let the question sink in… And then I replied eloquently, "… Bwah?"

I heard Mitsuru chuckle – CHUCKLE – as she took a deep breath, "I'm not surprised by your reaction," She looked out the window, looking at the sun dip beneath the horizon, "However, you've already experienced this truth firsthand." She looked back to me, a serious energy in her eyes, "Do you remember the night you came here? You **had** to have noticed the signs…"

The coffins, the lack of light, the bright moon… Actually, that was all happening when that giant Shadow thing attacked a week ago, "Yeah, I do remember… But what does it mean?"

Mitsuru leaned back a little, crossing her arms and relaxing her intent stare, "That's the **Dark Hour** – a time period hidden between one day and the next." I asked her to explain what it was and where it came from… Unfortunately, all they know is that it is the only time Shadows come out and Personas can be used.

"But, wait… If what you say is true, why hasn't anyone noticed it yet?" It's not like someone can go through life no knowing there were actually twenty-five hours instead of twenty-four… Then again, like Mitsuru said, I've experienced it firsthand… Maybe people don't realize it happening?

Ikutsuki chuckled a little at my question, "Well, of course they don't notice it. But the Dark Hour does exist, and it happens each night at midnight." He pulled off his glasses and wiped them clean on his jacket cloth, "It'll happen tonight… And every night to come."

Akihiko looks at me, nodding, "Normal people don't realize it, since they're sleeping inside their coffins…" So, the coffins I saw were people? This was insane, "But that's not what makes the Dark Hour so interesting." What? Did he say _interesting_? Yukari and I practically died from the Dark Hour, and this guy thinks it's _interesting_?

Akihiko jumped up, throwing a few lightning-quick punches as he caught his jacket, "You saw those creatures, we call them 'Shadows.' And-"

"Let me guess," I interrupted, "They only appear during the Dark Hour, since so far, nobody's mentioned this in school. I think giant black blobs would make headlines, wouldn't you? Unless they moved when people didn't realize… Such as the Dark Hour… Also, that giant thing headed to our dorm, when it could've just as easily attacked a coffin-body… Meaning," I stood up and turned to the giant monitor behind me, "It attacks those who are aware… People like us… Am I correct?"

Ikutsuki clapped, "You got it right on the head… My, what a level-headed 'Person-a', huh?" He chuckled as I slumped back into my chair… He ruined my genius moment.

Akihiko chuckled, "Yeah, but he missed the best part," I turned to him, confused, "**We** are the ones whose job it is to defeat them… It's exciting, right?"

Mitsuru's eyes jolted open as she got onto her feet, glaring at Akihiko, "Akihiko, don't treat this like some kind of video game… People _die_ from Shadows, don't forget."

Ikutsuki calmed the two super-powers down, "Now, now. He does his work well…" He turns to me, "Long story short… We're the **Specialized Extracurricular Execution Squad – SEES** for short." He fixes his turtleneck collar, "On paper, we're classified as a school club. But in reality, this group is dedicated to defeating the Shadows. Mitsuru is the 'club leader', and I am the 'club supervisor'."

Everyone filled me in on what Shadows do, how they do it and somewhat why they do it… Then, Ikutuski told me that there are only certain people who can function during the Dark Hour, and a select few can awaken to a power that allows them to fight these Shadows: Persona. Apparently, Shadows can only be killed by Personas… A sort of Highlander-schtick, somewhat.

Mitsuru got onto her feet again and opened the case, turning it around so I could peer inside: a red band with SEES on it and… A gun… Like Yukari's. Mitsuru looked at me with a pleading look, "What we're trying to say is... We want you to join us. We prepared an **Evoker** for you, and we'd like for you to lend us your strength." I didn't really know what to say… I mean, a few nights ago, I almost died on a rooftop fighting some super-natural enemy… Now I find out there are more people like me… People who live in the same dorm as me… Almost like a…

"Alright," I said, "I'll join your 'club'." Everyone congratulated me for joining the SEES, and Ikutsuki said that I should just stay in the dorm… And I suddenly got the feeling that he planned this from the start… Just who is this 'Ikutsuki' anyway..? I decided not to linger on it any longer, for fear of my mind splitting in half from all the information I've found today.

Suddenly… I felt a large surge of energy rush from my body to my hand, and voice called out…

_Thou shalt have our blessing when thou choosest to create a Persona of the Fool Arcana…_

In my hand, I found a small card in my hand, a figure of a man walking with a bag on a stick over his shoulder, followed by a small dog. At the bottom of the card, a big zero laid there. Then, out of nowhere, a bright light shone to the left of the zero and when the light faded, a golden star was there. My phone beeped and, when I checked it, it was the full-zero number again, and its single line said this:

_You have obtained Level 1 in the SEES Social Links!_

Social Links? That thing Igor talked about? He also said that, as my Social Links grow, so do my Personas' powers, right? If I remember right, this is taken from the Tarot, the Fool Arcana… Which means that there are more of these things. Maybe I should talk to more people, see if anything happens, but that would have to wait, since the meeting has ended. I decided to go to bed and sleep all of this off… It was getting kind of insane, to be honest… But I felt at home, sort of.

But as I laid there in my bed, I felt like I was being watched… By something sinister.

"Hello, it's been a while." I shot up out of my bed to see the prison-clothed boy from my first night, sitting on the edge of my bed… How long has he been here?

"W-who are you?" I asked, a bead of sweat trailing down my face.

He looked at me with those large, vacant blue eyes, "Oh, we've met before…" He looked away to the window nearby, the moon a brilliant yellow – The Dark Hour – and he said, "Soon, the end will come. I remembered, so I thought I should tell you."

"The end?" I asked, now really freaked out. First the contract, the Velvet Room… Now this kid is telling me the end is near? Like I didn't get enough of that in New York City.

He turned back to me with a sly smile on his face, "The End of Everything… But to be honest," He huddled up, his feet on my bed and his knees in his face, "I don't really know what it is." As he stared at me closer, his eyes widened, "Oh, looks as though you've awakened to your power, and what an unusual power it is. A power that takes many forms," He counted upon his fingers, and then crushed them into his hand, "Yet bound by none. It may prove to be your salvation, depending on where you end up…"

The boy disappeared and reappeared at the foot of my bed, leaning against the railings, "Do you remember when we first met? Or rather, the second time we met? I expect you to honor your commitment." Commitment? Did he mean the contract? "I'll be watching you," He said, pointing at me, "Even if you forget about me… Okay then, see you later." With that, he disappeared into the shadows of the night… What the hell is going on? I slowly fell back to sleep, despite worrying about someone else appearing in my room without warning.

Luckily, the next day is Sunday, so no need to worry about anything… Just… Nice… Peaceful-

"Hey! Can you hear me!" A loud voice called out, "Can you come down here?" Dammit! I walked down the stairs to the lobby to see Yukari and Akihiko standing by the door. When Yukari turned to me, she chuckled as she pointed to my legs, "Nice pajamas, _Kamen Rider_."

"Huh?" I looked down to see I still had my Kamen Rider pajamas on, "Ah, dammit! Let me go upstairs and change before we-"

"No need," Akihiko said, stifling a snicker, "Kamen Rider or not, there's someone I wanna introduce." He leaned against the door and knocked on it, "Come on, hurry up!"

"Hold your horses," A familiar voice called out, "This is freakin' heavy." Wait, wasn't that-

From outside, a figure strolled in with three suitcases, a ball cap and a goatee, "Holy crap! Junpei!"

Yukari was just as surprised, "J-Junpei! Why is HE here!" She looked to Akihiko who nodded, "No. No. No way! Do you mean he's-"

Akihiko decided to finish her sentence for her, "This is Iori Junpei from Class 2-F, and he'll be staying her as of today."

Junpei rubbed the back of his head, a bit embarrassed that two of his classmates were surprised to see him, "Wazzup?"

Yukari was… Less than amused… Scratch that, she's as amused as Stephen Hawking, "He's staying HERE! You've gotta be kidding me!"

Akihiko explained what had happened. Akihiko went out during the Dark Hour, despite Mitsuru's suggestion to let his arm rest, and had bumped into Junpei, who was freaking out. I don't blame him, if it hadn't been for Yukari and my general knowledge of the freaky, I would've freaked out like none other. Apparently, Junpei is not only someone who can walk during the Dark Hour, he has the same power as us: Persona. Who knew?

Akihiko explained to Junpei about the SEES, our job to hunt down and destroy Shadows, and Junpei agreed to give us a hand. So now, he's staying in the same dorm as Yukari and I. Yukari was surprised that Junpei had such potential – be it for a Persona or academics – but Junpei was modest and admitted he cried like a baby… So I told him I had blackmail on him… He was now less than amused, too. If it wasn't for Akihiko's playful personality, I would say I was the only one amused by all of this.

When Junpei mentioned having memory problems and all that, apparently Akihiko told him that it was normal for people who just awakened… But I don't recall ever having that problem, I told him so but Junpei just shrugged it off, "Big deal." He has an ego, but since he has a Persona, I can guess he has the power to back it up, too.

"Anyway, enough with the introductions," Akihiko said, stepping away from the door and grinning like a devil, "I think we're about ready…" Junpei was already jumping wildly from Akhiko's comment, but Yukari and I were… Befuddled. Fortunately, Akihiko answered for us, "With this many people, we can start exploring **that place**."

"Oh," Yukari said, apparently understanding what Akihiko meant now, "You mean **Tartarus**?"

"Tartarus?" Junpei said, scraping his tongue like he licked some nasty stuff, "What's that? Sounds like… Toothpaste or something."

"We believe the secret behind the Dark Hour," Akihiko said, with a dramatic pause, "Can be found, in there. The Chairman will give details tomorrow night, so be ready, okay?" Jeez, on a school night? What a teacher… After meeting Junpei and getting him situated, it turned out it was evening… I had slept the whole day… So I went back to bed.

The next day was peaceful, mostly… Apparently, we were having a school assembly tomorrow, but I'd probably be wiped from that 'Tartarsaurus' whatever thing, so I didn't care. As Yukari and I talked about how boring class was, the door suddenly flew open and Mitsuru strolled in and walked up to me, "Can I have a minute? Come to the lounge when you get back to the dorm. I have something to tell everyone."

Junpei appeared out of nowhere, and placed his hands and head on top of my head, "Oh, are we having that talk?"

"Dude, personal space."

"Oh, sorry."

Mitsuru turned around and said, "I'll save the details for later. See you there." With that, she left, quick as she came. Junpei and I agreed that Mitsuru did **not** beat around the bush and waste time. I wonder why?

"She's busy with stuff like," Yukari flustered a bit, "Student Council and other things… Unlike us."

Junpei lifted his hands in defense, "Whoa, Yuka-tan! Do I sense some… **Hostility**?"

"Well," Yukari said, puzzling together the right words in her mind, "It's not that I don't like her… She's just…"

"Yeah," I said, nodding to her, "I know what you mean." How can she do all that, plus SEES, plus all those other things she does and brush it off like it was nothing… She was perfect – academically, in sports, elegance – she had it all. It really was like she was a princess or something. After classes, the three of us went back to the dorm, since we needed to talk to Mitsuru in the lounge. While we walked, Junpei told some… Less-than-gentlemanly jokes… I laughed, but Yukari was… Like most times with Junpei, less than amused.

"I swear, if my friends see us walking together," She said, moving ahead of us, "I don't know you…"

Junpei nudged me, "Haha, I think we're starting to grow on her."

"Yeah, like a fungus," Yukari said, laughing. I got to admit, her laugh is cute and warm… But nothing's happening between us… Yeah, nothing at all…

We got to the dorm somewhat later than we were supposed to, however, Mitsuru decided to leave the details for another time and instead, we headed up to the fourth floor to talk with Ikutsuki about Tartarus. As it turned out, before Yukari, Junpei and I, it was only Akihiko and Mitsuru fighting the Shadows. Now, with us, that makes five. Ikutsuki says we're going to Tartarus when we can at midnight, starting tonight. Junpei and I were curious about Tartarus, so we asked Ikutsuki what it was, but he only said that we wouldn't see it, since it only appears during the Dark Hour.

When Akihiko explained that Tartarus was like a Shadow nest, that peaked my interest. This thing – Tartarus – was the home to Shadows, only appearing during the Dark Hour, and disappearing when the next day starts. But, the thing is… What created the Dark Hour and Tartarus? Junpei was raring to go, despite knowing nothing about Tartarus, other than that it was a place for us to train. Unfortately, Ikutsuki doesn't have a Persona, so he's no use… And that brings up another interesting point: If he doesn't have a Persona… How did he come to create this group? How is it that he evaded the Shadows for so long?

We left for the supposed 'Tartarus', but somehow ended up at the school gates, "Um… This is Gekkoukan, I doubt that the Shadow nest is here."

"Yeah," Junpei said, crossing his arms in dissatisfaction, "This is kind of a joke, a bad joke." He turned to Yukari, "So, where is it, really?"

Akihiko chuckled mischievously, "Just wait a few minutes…" He turned to us and pointed at his watch, "It's almost midnight." As the clock struck midnight… The lights went out, and the moon went a bright yellow.

Suddenly, the school began twisting and churning its way into the sky, pulling abstract pieces of stone and ancient buildings to the surface. Once it stopped, it nearly touched the sky, it had to be…. Jeez, I can't even compare it to anything!

"This is Tartarus," Mitsuru said, "The labyrinth that reveals itself during the Dark Hour." Junpei was freaked out that our school suddenly disappeared, but I was laughing. Who knew, the base of all evil was actually below our school! It was just so… Ironic. However, what _did_ happen to the school? Mitsuru answered that, "Once the Dark Hour passes, everything returns to normal. So will the school."

"But why!" Junpei said, pointing at Tartarus, "Why'd our school turn into a giant tower!" Good point… Why was this here? The Dark Hour, Iwatodai, Tartarus in our school, the Shadows, Persona… The explosion ten years ago… All of it traces back to here, doesn't it? Mitsuru didn't answer, but the look on her face didn't say that she was clueless… More like she couldn't tell us. I thought I should've said something, but decided against that.

Yukari, surprisingly, stood up for Mitsuru's defense, "I'm sure it's complicated. Who cares anyway? It's not like it would change our minds about fighting." True, these things need to be defeated.

Mitsuru and Akihiko have only gone inside, but we – Junpei, Yukari and I – will be the first to actually delve into the labyrinth. Lucky us. As we made our way inside, I was amazed by how different it was to outside. Outside looks dreary and depressing, but inside Tartarus was more like… A different world altogether. At the center of the only room we could access, there was a large staircase that rose up to… A giant clock face?

Junpei was ecstatic, Yukari was creeped out, Mitsuru was… Well, Mitsuru, and Akihiko was… Akihiko… Yeah, we're a bunch of hoodlums, really. Akihiko insisted we go inside the labyrinth, and, from what I recall, labyrinths tend to get people LOST. I voiced my complaint, so did Yukari, but Mitsuru told us to just go a little bit in, just to get a feel for it. Also, Mitsuru would use her Persona to give us information. Oh, how convenient.

Akihiko then said we needed a leader. My vote was for Yukari, since… Well, I've never been much of a leader, more like a follower, and I sure as hell wasn't going to follow Junpei into one of his insane antics. Junpei jumped around screaming MEEEE, Yukari was rolling her eyes, and I just kept staring straight ahead, not making eye contact with ANYONE.

"Hmm.." Akihiko pointed at me, "I choose you, Rabbit." Dammit.

"W-wait! Why him!" Junpei groaned, "He doesn't even look like a leader!"

"But," Yukari said, interrupting his rant, "He HAS fought them before…" Great, pick this time of all times to stand up for me…

Junpei looked at me with starry eyes, "S-seriously?"

Akihiko coughed, getting our attention, "That is true, but there's another reason… You two," Pointing at Junpei then Yukari, Akihiko pulls out his Evoker and points it to his head, "Can you summon your Persona without difficulties like he can?"

Yukari was woman enough to admit she couldn't, but Junpei put on a brave face, "Y-yeah! Of course I can!" Maybe it was because of his courage, but Yukari said she could, too.

Akihiko wasn't okay with doubts, "These are Shadows… Without your Persona, you're screwed."

We all agreed on me being Leader, although I hated being the leader more than anything in the world… Except needles. As we began our ascent up the stairs… Something caught my eye, a blue door. I walked back over to it, drawn in by its lure. I reached into my pocket and pulled out the Velvet Key Igor gave me and stuck it into the door. It clicked and flung open, dragging me inside.

Once again, I found myself in the Velvet Room, with Igor and that maid-girl, what was her name? Igor sat there with his wicked grin, "Ah, it's so good to see you again. It is time for you to wield your power." He looks up into the shaft we were riding in, "The tower that you are about to venture into… How did it come to be? For what purpose does it exist?" He looks down and shakes his head, "Regrettably, you are not yet capable of answering these questions. That is why you must be made aware of the nature of your power."

"M-my power?"

"Your power is unique," Igor said, "It's like the number zero. Empty, but at the same time, holds infinite possibilities. You, my boy, are able to possess multiple Personas, and summon them as needed." He held up cards and they floated in air, shuffling around one another, "And when you have defeated your enemies, you will see the faces of possibility before you."

He grabs a single card from the group and looks at it, "There may be times when they are difficult to grasp… But do not fear. Seize what you have earned." The card disappeared from his hand, as did the remaining cards, "Your power will grow accordingly… Be sure to keep that in mind." He looks back to the clock, "My spare time will soon be scarce. But please, come again of your own accord."

He turns back and points to the door, "I'll tell you my true role once you get back… The role in which I will best assist you. Until then, farewell."

The maid-girl waved bye as well, "Bon voyage!"

"Bon voyage?" I said, perplexed. Suddenly, dark filled my vision. Now, I was back in Tartarus, feeling fine as usual. When Yukari asked me if I was alright, I replied, "Yeah, I just opened this door and…"

Yukari looked at me like I was stoned, "Huh? What door..?"

Junpei chuckled, "Dude, are you high or something?"

What? They can't see the door..? Wait, Igor said something about my contract allowing me access to the room… Yukari knows nothing about the contract, and I assume Junpei has no clue either… So, only I can see it? And others who have signed the contract? Hmm… Very interesting… I'll make a note to myself to come back when I have the time. After some cheering and criticizing, I finally snapped out of my thoughts and made our way to the Tartarus entrance.

I stood there, just looking at it. It was surprisingly beautiful, despite it being the entrance to pure evil, but I was entranced by it nonetheless. Entering into Tartarus was slightly less climactic than what I thought it would be. The silver veil covering the doorway felt like moving through… I guess the closest thing would be heavy air? It felt like something surrounded me, but it didn't hinder me at all. It was a bizarre feeling, but strangely familiar, a slight hint of nostalgia, like I had done this before… Yeah, right, passing through dimensions is an every-day part of my life.

At least I'm not jumping through TVs or anything else ridiculous such as that…

The inside of Tartarus was… Well, it looked just like our school, except it had a horror-film filter on it. The walls had blood on it, the lights were dim, and there was nobody except us three in here. As we walked a bit deeper, we suddenly heard Mitsuru in our heads, as though she had some kind of psychic powers, "Okay, let's take it easy, okay? We don't want anybody to get hurt… Or worse." Great, even on the lowest level, this place is still harder than Ninja Gaiden…

As we rounded a corner, we saw something black and slimy crawling across the ground, "Look out! It's a Shadow!" Apparently, Yukari can't control the volume of her voice, because as soon as she screamed that, the Shadow turned and scurried his way over to us. The mask it had was similar to the one from that night I awoke to my power, but it wasn't nearly as big or menacing.

As we surrounded the Shadow, it reared its ugly head and tried to attack us, however, we were way too quick for it… Except me. That thing slugged me into the wall, even though I tried blocking it. I guess I'm still a bit fatigued from that one night.

"Persona!" Junpei yelled, I heard his Evoker crack as a giant metallic bird-looking thing swooped over and struck the Shadow with his winged boots, knocking it away from me. Was that Junpei's Persona? I got up slowly, holding my side, and noticed Junpei jumping around, "Oh yeah! That was soooo awesome, did you see that!"

Yukari scoffed, "Hah, watch this," She put the Evoker to her head, "Io!" As the gun cracked, the figure of a girl chained and sitting upon a giant bull's head appeared. The figure called 'Io' cast her arms out as her eyes opened, sending a gale of wind onto the Shadow, destroying it. I had no idea you could use elemental attacks! Hm, maybe I should try and find out if Orpheus has something like that.

Suddenly, there was a blue light above us, then from the ceiling dropped three cards, all similar on the top – a blue and black design. They floated in front of me, begging for me to reach out and grab them… Was this what Igor meant when he said I would see the 'faces of possibility'? Before I could grab one, they began spinning around, waiting for me to grab one. I waited for the one I felt was the best card and, when it came around, I shot my hand out and yanked it away, while the other cards faded away in smoke.

I flipped the card over to see… Well, it looked like another Persona, but there was a skull and crossbones over it.. That **cannot** be good. Suddenly, Mitsuru screamed over the… Psychic microphone, I guess? She sounded really freaked out, "Guys, get out of there!"

"W-why?" I asked, "What's wrong? Is it already time to go?" She did say that it disappeared once the Dark Hour was over, but if we were inside, what would happen?

"No! Much worse!" Worse than getting stuck in Tartarus? "It's…"

"Hey, guys…" Junpei said, pointing down the hall, "W-what's that? That's not a normal Shadow, is it?"

We turned to see a figure floating in midair – no legs or anything – in a tattered duster coat, carrying two ridiculously long barrel guns. It didn't seem bad, but as it got closer, I could feel my body tensing up and sweat, "Is **that** what's worse than getting stuck in here?"

"Guys! Run to the entrance! You can't fight the Reaper!" As soon as she said that, I grabbed Yukari and Junpei and pushed them back to the entrance, only looking back to see the figure beginning to pick up his pace…

**Haha! So, we are onto the second chapter of 'Soul Spiral'! Sorry this took so long, I've been sick and working on my new computer. This is a bit rushed, but I found that ending it with the Reaper showing up and chasing our heroes would be a great cliffhanger. Anyway, for those of you waiting for BRUTAL OVERDRIVE Chapter 3, you're gonna have to wait a bit longer. I'm going to work on a new WoW fan-fic that I'm sure you'll all enjoy! :D Also, have to give a shout-out to NaminexSora Lover! Also, another shout-out to AriaAsacura, for helping to inspire me for my new WoW fan-fic. I suggest you read 'The Project' by NSL and 'Authentic Dragon' by AriaAsacura! They're both fantastic reads! **

**Anyway, as for what's going on with my release schedule:**

**Next: WoW Fan-fic (No title yet, but definitely got something going)**

**Afterward: BRUTAL OVERDRIVE Chapter 3: Brutal Boss (The conclusion of the Pleasure Tower Infiltration!)**

**Even Later: Probably another chapter to the WoW Fan-fic, or Soul Spiral!**


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